Shares of VNET Group Inc. surged more than 30% in U.S. trading on Wednesday after the Chinese data-center operator announced that entities linked to a Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL) affiliate have agreed to acquire a substantial stake in the company.
PJ Millennium I Ltd. and PJ Millennium II Ltd., which are part of the PJ Millennium Limited Partnership, have entered into an agreement to purchase up to 650.4 million Class A shares from entities under Shandong Hi-Speed Holdings Group (SDHG). The purchase price is set at $1.4486 per share, with each American depositary share (ADS) representing six ordinary shares priced at $8.6914. The total transaction value could reach approximately $942 million.
Upon closing, which is expected in the fourth quarter of 2026, the buyers would hold as much as 38.1% of VNET's outstanding shares, based on 1.71 billion ordinary shares as of March 31. The deal is subject to SDHG shareholder approval and other customary conditions.
The involvement of a CATL affiliate is particularly noteworthy, given CATL's position as the world's largest manufacturer of electric-vehicle batteries. The transaction underscores the growing intersection between energy storage, power infrastructure, and the rapidly expanding AI data-center market, which demands significant power and cooling resources.
VNET's Nasdaq-listed ADRs (ticker: VNET) climbed 32.4% to $11.94, briefly touching $12.00, with trading volume reaching approximately 25.4 million shares. The sharp rise indicates investor enthusiasm for the strategic partnership, even though the deal involves the transfer of existing shares rather than new capital injection into the company.
According to VNET, the buyers are acquiring shares held by Success Flow International Investment and Choice Faith Group Holdings. The structure means that while ownership changes, no fresh capital flows directly into VNET's accounts. The buyers will receive certain investor rights but are restricted from freely transferring a portion of the acquired shares and must follow voting instructions from founder Josh Sheng Chen and his associated group for a specified period.
VNET founder and interim CEO Josh Sheng Chen stated that the company plans to collaborate with its new strategic investors on technology and supply chain initiatives, aiming for "end-to-end innovation" in the AI data-center space. The company has not yet set specific financial targets for the partnership.
The announcement comes ahead of VNET's first-quarter earnings release, scheduled for May 26 before the U.S. market open. The company has been in rapid expansion mode, reporting 2025 total net revenue of RMB9.95 billion ($1.42 billion), a 20.5% increase year-over-year. Wholesale data-center revenue surged 77.4% to RMB3.46 billion. For 2026, VNET forecasts revenue between RMB11.5 billion and RMB11.8 billion, with capital expenditures in the range of RMB10 billion to RMB12 billion.
VNET positions itself as a carrier- and cloud-neutral data-center provider, operating across more than 30 cities in China and serving over 7,000 enterprise clients. The company faces intense competition from rivals such as GDS Holdings and Bain Capital's Bridge Data Centres, which was reportedly valued at $5 billion in a recent sale process.
